Way to live this epoch

People used to think like this: “If machines took care of daily work for us, we could spend time on what we want do.” Time has passed. Housekeeping and simple works are done by machines. We don’t need to prepare water and firewood. We don’t need to use carriages anymore.

So can we spend time on what we want do? I don’t think so. Human beings are still working from morning until night. Honestly time we spend for work became longer.

Why do we live? Do we work for live? Do we live for work? Way to live depends on individuals. No one knows your answer. It is trial and error, and I’m on it. Do you think I am OK? 😉 Because I live every day, I have to think about my way of life. I thought I should post this to my blog. This way I can share my idea.

Today I have written from psychological side. The beginning is “so-called” psychology. The next part is “Industrial and organizational psychology”. This part introduces organization and power at last. The flow is from abstract to concrete.

Human Beings’ Needs

Abraham Maslow put human beings’ needs in a hierarchy.

1. Physiological needs
   Needs to ware, to eat, and to live.
2. Safety needs
   Needs to be safe
3. Love and belonging
   Needs to have friends and family
4. Esteem
   Needs to be respected
5. Self-actualization
   Needs to make his dream or wish happen

He says these needs are made in order. There might be time in between 2 of them. Search for details. Which one are you in? No matter what stage you are in, that is not the question if it is good or or bad.

Job and Self-Actualization

Have you ever thought of altitudes toward your job? No matter the size of company, there are no people who enjoy working. At least I haven’t met people like that.

If you are a student, watch your parents. Do they enjoy working? Even if they say “Yes, Ienjoy working”, you would feel if it is really true or not if you are teenagers. Actually it is a kind of taboo. 😉

Why are you doing your job? If you are student, why are you studying? (or why you are not studying even you are a student?) Why did you choose your subject?

We go to school before we know. And then we work for a company. In most cases, parents lay your track. If parents are working for companies, their children also work for companies. If parents are managing companies, their children also manage companies.

In either way, we have a job before we know, and spend most of our lifetime on it before we know. If you are currently a neet (Not in Education, Employment, or Training), please don’t give up reading. The world is changing every day. Do you think the system which made the Occupy Wall Street movement sustainable? Yes, I’m saying the era of capitalism is going to end. But what I talk to you today is useful after capitalism.

I believe most of us were born because we wanted to do something. We assign most of lifetime on job. If you choose your job but you are not satisfied, your job, what you want to do and what state of being you prefer are not collaborating.

What is a job? I don’t think a job is a way just to earn money. A job is a tool to know real you and a way for self-actualization. Edgar Schein, Ph.D., social psychology, says the fundamentals people desire for jobs can be classified into only 8 categories which is called Career Anchors.

• Technical / Functional Competence
  People who desire to use or enhance their capability in their field. They value the job itself.
• General Managerial Competence
  People who desire to organize. They are willing to find tasks to achieve the goal of their organization and to approach coworkers.
• Autonomy / Independence
  People who desire the way they do at their own pace. They don’t want to be constrained by rules.
• Security / Stability
  People who obey orders of their company for lifetime employment. They move from region to region in a positive attitude.
• Entrepreneurial Creativity
  People who desire to start their own business or services. They have keen interests to try. They value the record or a result that they have built.
• Service / Dedication to a Cause
  People who desire to make the society better. Teachers and doctors may be categorized, but there are people who are categorized under “Technical / Functional Competence”, “Autonomy / Independence “, or “Security / Stability”. You need to watch carefully.
• Pure Challenge
  People who desire to challenge problems, difficulties and even other people. They value the state of being challenging.
• Lifestyle
  People who desire work in accordance with their lifestyle. They value if their organization respects them and their family.

The important thing is to know that our desire can be different. What you desire is not what they desire. If you are comfortable, that is fine. If you are not comfortable, you can find the next place directed by your category.

This is my result.

“Autonomy / Independence” and “Entrepreneurial Creativity” marked very high. “General Managerial Competence” and “Pure Challenge” are very low. I KNOW. 😉

If you want try, download the questionnaire. [Excel] / [PDF]

If you want to know the detail, read “Career Anchors” Edgar H. Schein. You can think what value you have, what you are good at, what you want truly to do, and on what you can feel meaning of what you do.

Working Ways in Organization

His book was sold in 1990 in US, but he doesn’t mention anything about background of society. Does his theory affected by the economy? Does he assume capitalistic economy? Can his theory applied to socialist economy? Can we still use it in 2015, not only in 1990? I think his theory is based on truth, but we are living in an era when organizations can be easily gone.

Predict Future of Office and Work 2014 edition, Nikkei Business, defines 4 ways to work in organization.

1. Survive
   Increase the amount of job and do them more efficiently. Be a good player of power games. Become a capable global person. Turn to God for help.
2. Cling
   Try to be a good and loved person. Good for person who can talk things don’t contain anything. Person who is ready for sacrifice many things to defend stable salary and employment. You might be a targeted of harassments in this selection.
3. Get out
   Become a professional of your field. You have skill already for sale if you work 20 years in Japan. (The skill is hospitality. The author says Japanese has so much hospitality that they don’t realize it as a skill they can value. )
4. Give up
   Person who has something to spend life. There is satisfaction of life outside business. Give up for getting rich life.

The magazine recommends 6 books for each way. What was interesting was that I have read at least one book from all the ways. These books are what I’ve read.

Way to Work	Title and Author
Survive	“How to Win Friends & Influence People” by Dale Carnegie
Cling	“As a Man Thinketh” by James Allen
Get out	“The Shift” by Lynda Gratton“ The E-Myth Revisited” by Michael E. Gerber “Makers” by Chris Anderson
Give up	“Build my own house” (Japanese only) by Seigo Ujiie

A Post Native to Japan

There are people who can survive organization, but there are not always enough posts for them. In that case, what happens? In Japan, organization makes posts.

A post is made. Not an actual division is made. The name of the post is “In-charge-of Manager”. I didn’t know what it meant! I searched and found there were many people who were asking the same thing, and a person answered,” It is a post used if a person who has no follower, is in charge of something which is only capable of doing by manager”. I see. This is why they use “in-charge-of”. I thought they were in charge of a manager 😉

I have no idea when this system started. I don’t even know if this is general system. Is this the same in your country? The truth is I have never seen a business card with this title.

Organization and Power

Organization and power can never be split. People like bosses or directors who survived their organization have power. They can control others as they wish, otherwise they lose power.

We should know that power is compensative. I’m not saying that having power is good or bad. According to Jeffrey Pfeffer, he says in his book, “Power In Organizations”, these are compensations:

• Being watched every movement
• Losing freedom of time
• Being taken huge amount of time and energy
• Can’t trust people
• Addictive

Because I have never had power, I don’t know if they are true or not. Actually, none of above meets me, which might prove I don’t have power. LOL

Summary

Way to live depends on individual people. It is natural that we have dissatisfaction or stress. The reason is because we chose not to chose and compromise. We don’t know we have choices.

We have aptitudes for our job. We have aptitudes for our working in organization. If they don’t fit to you, you would feel “something is wrong.” I’m not talking about if your job or organization is good or bad. You are not fitting to them. Only you can change it.

First of all, accept that feeling. And then what we do next. “I have discovered a truly marvelous solution of this, which this margin is too narrow to contain.” Fermat could say this, but we can’t say this today. I can keep writing eternally because the concept like margin doesn’t exist anymore in the Internet. See? The world is changing. 😉

If you are interested in this post, check all posts of “Things I thought”. For example, I posted these articles.

• “DO NOT MIX” – Label is just a part of truth
  Manufactures may warn what they think danger, but they don’t always consider users to judge how danger the product is, or they don’t always warn what they have to.
• Let’s know that we know nothing
  What do you think if you are asked “Is august hot or cold?” We don’t know that we know nothing. Therefore we assume, fear and decide good or bad.
• Let’s choose information and verify it
  As the Internet spread and individual people can send messages, how many people verify the information they receive?

This post is also available in: Japanese